ARREST: The man was tried at Burnley Crown Court in Lancashire [FLICKR]

The 46-year-old told the girl to bend over before ordering her own brother to hit her 120 times with the spoon in a "sadistic" punishment beating.

When the boy reluctantly agreed and struck his sister on the back legs and arm, the father grabbed the ladle himself and repeatedly beat the girl as she sobbed and gasped for breath.

The father also kicked the child in the hip, back and stomach and threatened the girl's mother with violence after she tried to intervene.

He then said he was going to Pakistan and left the house.

Later the father explained he had beat his daughter when she failed to honour her promise of praying and reciting pages from the Holy Book every day.

He said he didn't realise beating children was "such a big thing."

He was arrested after a visit to his home in East Lancashire by an official from the NSPCC following a call from another child of the family.

At Burnley Crown Court the father – who cannot be named for legal reasons – admitted child cruelty through an Urdu speaking interpreter but was spared jail by Judge Jonathan Gibson, who said prison would "punish" his family.

TERRIFIED: The girl was also kicked by her father in the stomach [GETTY: Pic posed by model]

“He hit her 30 to 40 times in total and ordered her to remain in that position, despite her crying and gasping for breath”

Prosecutor Tracy Yates

The father was given a two year community order with two years' supervision and ordered to pay £150 costs.

Judge Gibson told the father the offence was "serious over-chastisement".

He added: "I have in mind when sentencing you the very obvious abhorrence that society has in relation to assaults upon children, but also the effects upon your family a custodial sentence might have.

"It seems to me that I would be punishing your family if I were to send you immediately to prison, which would be for a relatively short period, when in fact intensive work can be done, and needs to be done, in the community with you."

Earlier the court heard how the girl had lived in Burnley with her parents and several siblings.

The incident occurred in March after a dispute over who was going to do the ironing.

Prosecutor Tracy Yates told an earlier hearing: "He tried to hit her brother, but he managed to dodge it. The girl says she was hit by her father and was too scared to say anything.

"He hit her 30 to 40 times in total and ordered her to remain in that position, despite her crying and gasping for breath."

ABUSE: The father admitted to child cruelty [GETTY: Pic posed by model]

Miss Yates added: "The girl says this happens every year and he had hit her with the ladle in the past. She says he hits the girls, but only shouts at the boys."

The victim's mother saw scratches on her arm but did not feel like she could speak to her husband for fearing of making it worse.

The prosecutor continued: "He said he was telling her to pray and she wasn't and he's made a mistake and hit her.

"He said every day the girl says she is going to pray and recite and she doesn't. He said he had hit her two, three or four times with the spoon. He said he had kicked her. It had not been really hard."

The father had been sent to crown court for sentencing by magistrates who said their powers were not sufficient enough to deal with him.

They said at an earlier hearing: "We feel this was clearly sadistic behaviour."